Communication Reminders

In our world, much like in yours, people are our greatest asset. Our organization recently had a speaker at a staff development meeting; his name was Mr. Michael Allosso and his message was how to be “You on Your Best Day”. It was a fascinating topic, and honestly, many of us left with a bit more spunk and a bit more drive not only professionally, but also personally.

I couldn’t help but think that this topic, and how some of what I heard, might be helpful to some of you as you enter the search for an associateship or your first practice to purchase. I’ve listed my top nine takeaways here; there were so many more, but these really stuck with me (and they might just be on a post-it on my bathroom mirror!)

Every interaction is a performance: The message was simple here – every interaction you have is an opportunity to shine and prove yourself and your message. If you are interviewing for a position, the front desk should get the same performance the doctor gets. If you are interacting with patients for the first time or the 5th time, they are analyzing your behavior and judging the practice and you. You are always being judged so shine!

People should be better off because of your interaction: I try to live by this and while you don’t have to change someone’s life with every hello, treating people kindly, with respect and attempting to make their world a nicer, easier, more pleasant place to be, in the end, helps you too.

Stick Your Landing: This is big in interviews and communications with your partner or potential seller…all too often we make a big impactful statement and then cut ourselves short by adding a caveat like “in my opinion” or “but maybe you think differently…” or some other qualifier. Be confident in your opinions and statements (or don’t say them).

Keep your Mouth Shut!: This goes along with number 3; say what you mean, stick your landing, and then keep your mouth shut! Sometimes the need to “fill” the silence removes the possibility of you hearing what the other person has to say or allowing them to respond.

Energy Begets Energy: While anyone who studies physics can prove this to you, the point of this one is that as a leader in your office (whether the associate to staff or the owner of your own dental practice) the energy and attitude you put out is the environment you create and those we surround ourselves with can thrive off our energy and attitude or not thrive if you don’t exude the right energy.

Greatest Deterrent to Success is Success: So often, once we find a model that works we hesitate to go outside that model even if a better one may exist. We are scared to fail, so we stay in our box. Sometimes success means taking risks and being willing to think outside the box. Now, there are plenty of failures that can happen by doing this but I think removing the “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” mentality can be an asset. The most successful people aren’t scared to fail, they know it’ll happen and plan for it.

Passion: many of you already have this and have shown it through years of school to get where you are, but don’t forget that people (sellers, owners, patients, etc.) can tell when you are passionate about something and nothing is more impactful than knowing someone is confident and passionate about their goals and work.

Focus: Really think about your goals and be focused on achieving those. We can’t be good at everything and sometimes the lack of focus prevents us from being good at anything. Want to do a dental start up – DO IT! Want to start a charity to provide pro bono dentistry – DO IT! Want to build out a dental practice management-consulting group – DO IT! Maybe just not all at the same time! Focus in on each goal and make the most of the energy you have to achieve it.

Feedback – be Truthful and Specific and Positive: Many only provide feedback when someone has done something incorrectly or done something extraordinary. We frame it as praise or constructive criticism and while both of those things are needed and can be beneficial, providing regular positive feedback that is specific versus a generic “good job” given to everyone for everything has so much more meaning. By being specific you highlight that you are paying attention and by providing this type of feedback often you are providing the recipient a boost in morale and acknowledgement of their efforts.

Maybe these are just reminders or maybe some of these are new for you but hopefully you find these as impactful as we did! Want to chat about an upcoming interview or dental practice visit or transition? Contact us today for a complimentary coaching call!